Chapter 18

EIGHTEEN

The courtyard, which sat far above the settlements, was bathed in the warm glow of Purrik, the closest star. It gave light in the mornings and late afternoon only, as the rest of the time, the Axis’ communications array blocked the light. The air was still and quiet, a welcome change from the usual hum of the fortress machinery. Turi sat on the edge of the parapet, looking out the opposite way of the settlements, where Ellion had gone today. Her arm, where the rock had struck her yesterday, throbbed faintly, but the pain was a distant echo compared to the turmoil within her.

Her body, which also still throbbed, felt loose and alive. She couldn’t stop thinking of what she and Ellion had shared the previous night. He’d taken her body, but also her heart. He’d shown her that passion shared between mates wasn’t something to be endured—as she’d been taught—but was glorious pleasure.

Ara’s shadowy form sat beside her, looking very much like a Terian in this form. Turi didn’t care what shape the Skrac took. Ara was her friend whether she made herself appear like a Terian or as a nebulous dark blob.

“You seem troubled,” Ara observed, her voice soft.

Turi leaned back against the cool stone. She suspected Ara knew very well that she and Ellion had consummated their bond, but she had no desire to discuss the act with another. “No, not troubled. Just…thinking. I wasn’t prepared for Ellion turning into a full dragon.”

Ara chuckled, a low, rumbling sound. “He was magnificent, wasn’t he? A true Zaruxian dragon in all his glory.”

Turi shuddered, remembering the terrifying and brutal beauty of Ellion’s transformation in contrast with the tender lover who had brought her so much pleasure. “He was. But also…wild. I thought he was going to slaughter those males. No wonder I was raised to fear him.”

“He showed great restraint, you know. He could have killed them all.” Ara moved closer, tilting her head. “And he would have, if they’d done worse than give you that scratch.”

Turi’s cheeks flushed. She didn’t bother to deny it. “I don’t want that power,” she admitted, her voice barely above a whisper. “I care for him, Ara. But the more I learn about what the Axis have done to my people, the more I realize that they need our help, not more discipline and oppression. Not more death.”

Ara’s shadowy hand rested on Turi’s shoulder, a comforting weight. “They do. But how do you explain that to them? Ellion said that when he told them the other females were taken by the will of the Axis, they called him a liar.”

Turi looked up at her, her brow furrowed. “There must be a way to show them the truth—that the Axis is not a deity, but an abomination.”

Ara’s form shimmered slightly, the edges blurring. “We’ll find a way. Ellion has been an overseer for a long time and knows your people well. He just needs to remember his past and the two of you can find a way to give the truth to the Terians. You can trust in the bond you share, in the love that binds you.”

“Love,” Turi murmured. “That’s what this is? When I was taught about what life would be as a bondmate, it never included love. It was duty, work, endurance. Nothing like the way I feel.” She rolled her shoulders, thinking of the passion she shared with Ellion the night before. She’d given herself to him without reservation. When she thought of him, her feelings were expansive, soft, and hungry. Not what she felt for her friends, but some things were the same—fierce loyalty, happiness in his presence, and an interest in what he had to say.

“Love was abandoned by your people when survival became the priority,” Ara said harshly. “The Axis won’t stop oppressing them until they are reduced to a few hardy numbers, digging the dirt with their hands, and killing each other for scant resources. When there is nothing left of the proud people they once were, the Axis will abandon them and this place. Only then will the contract with your peoples’ enemy be complete.”

The thought brought tears to Turi’s eyes. “That’s horrible. We’ve done nothing to deserve this.”

“The settlements are struggling. I spent the day traveling among them yesterday, deep in the shadows, listening. There is talk of an uprising. The Terian female who fled and ended up joining the Hecrons is making a case for an alliance between the Hecrons and the Terians to overthrow the Axis’ control.”

“An uprising?” Turi’s brow furrowed. “Against the Axis? But they’re so powerful. It would be suicide.”

Ara nodded, her shadowy form solidifying slightly. “It would be a difficult fight, but not impossible. The Terians are resourceful, resilient. And they have a powerful ally in Ellion, if they can learn to trust him and not see him as one with the Axis.” Ara held up a finger. “Also, if Ellion can see himself as not one with the Axis.”

“Not an easy separation after centuries of knowing nothing else,” Turi said, doubt creeping into her voice.

Ara chuckled. “Yes, but he is a force to be reckoned with, Turi. Even the Axis fear him, I think. I’ve seen him fight Hecrons. Seen him bring down Rashark ships not sanctioned by the Axis. Seen him shake the earth itself.” She paused. Her gaze seemed to be fixed on the distant horizon. “He needs you, Turi, now more than ever. You are his anchor. His reason for fighting. Don’t renounce your power. Embrace it. It may be what saves your people from the fate the Axis have for them.”

Turi’s chest ached at Ara’s words. “I am one female. An oddball in my settlement. My father was eager to be rid of me.” She looked up at the soaring wall of the fortress. “I finally found someone who loves me. I don’t want to lose him to a war with an entity with more power than we can fathom.”

“Sometimes, the aura of power is a mirage.” Ara’s gaze softened, her shadowy hand resting on Turi’s arm. “It will be hard to see the Axis as anything other than what you just described, but they are not gods. And even if they were, they would still have weaknesses. There must be a way to exploit them.”

Turi thought about that. She did still see the Axis as all-powerful and godlike. It was all she knew, living in the shadow of that swirling maelstrom in the sky. All she’d been taught from birth. “How do we find their weakness?”

“Profit is all that matters to them,” she replied. “We’ll speak with Ellion when he returns. I hope he has some success in calming the settlements, to reassure them that he is on their side.”

“How? They are terrified of him,” Turi countered. “And now, suspicious, too. They believe he’s using some type of dark mind powers to make me stay.”

“The Riests are doing their best to convince them that you have been twisted. But perhaps a little fear is in order, just to keep them from showing up again with their farming tools.”

“Waste of good tools,” Turi muttered.

A shadow fell over them, momentarily obscuring the light of Purrik. Turi looked up to see Ellion descending, his wings spread wide, his form silhouetted against the bright sky. He landed gracefully near them, folding his wings with a soft rustle. His face was grim, his eyes shadowed.

“How did it go?” Turi asked, rising to her feet.

Ellion shook his head, his gaze sweeping over the settlements below. “The Riests managed to pacify the people, but it’s a fragile peace. They’re scared, Turi. And desperate.”

“Did you tell them about the Rashark raiders?” Ara asked, her shadowy form shifting slightly.

“I couldn’t,” Ellion admitted, rubbing a hand over his face. “The Axis have forbidden me from revealing any information about off-worlders. They claim it would disrupt the rehabilitation process.” He spat the words out with disgust. “More likely it would give the Terians an opportunity to make a deal with another species to get off this planet.”

Turi’s heart ached for her people. They were trapped in a cycle of fear and desperation, clinging to the lies of the Axis, who were their true oppressors. “We need to read that other journal,” she said, her voice firm. “It might hold the key to exposing the Axis and freeing my people.”

Ellion nodded, his gaze locking on hers. “I agree. That’s a full record of what they did to me. Of my missing centuries.” He looked from Turi to Ara. “After a day visiting the settlements, I can say their mistrust is palpable. But beyond their anger is shock that you chose me over them. I heard noises that I bewitched you. That I’m keeping you here against your will for nefarious purposes.”

Turi crossed her arms and raised her chin. “I’d rather be here with you—bewitched or otherwise—rather than anywhere else.”

Ellion’s lips curved into a small smile, but it was fleeting, replaced by a sobering reminder of their circumstances. He gestured to the fortress behind them, his expression grim. “The Axis contacted me. There’s a summons built into this damned implant. They want to see me.”

A chill ran down Turi’s spine. Ara’s shadowy form flickered nervously. “Do you think they know?” she asked, her voice barely a whisper.

Ellion shrugged, his gaze fixed on the distant horizon where the Axis’ communications array hung like a malevolent eye in the sky. “I have no idea what they know, but they have not summoned me for a social visit.” He turned to Turi, his eyes filled with a mixture of love and determination. “Stay with Ara, Turi.”

Turi reached out, her hand resting on his arm. “Be careful, Ellion,” she whispered, her heart heavy with a foreboding she couldn’t explain.

He covered her hand with his own, his thumb stroking her skin. “I will,” he promised. He leaned down, pressing a kiss to her forehead, the touch lingering, a brand of possession and love. With a final glance at her, Ellion strode inside the fortress. Turi watched him go, her heart aching. She turned to Ara, her expression grim. “What do you think they want?”

Afternoon shadows cut across the courtyard as Ara took her formless shape. “I think you know,” Ara said after a silence so long it turned cold in the courtyard.

Turi swallowed hard at the ominous tone. “They’re going to wipe his memory again, and probably get rid of me.” Dread tightened Turi’s chest, making her heart race so hard it felt as if it might come loose. “We can’t let that happen.”

Ara leaned her dark form forward, and for the first time, Turi wished the Skrac would take her Terian shape. “This fortress…Ellion calls it his home. But it is a Zaruxian ship. I was not yet born when it landed and embedded itself into the mountain, but my older family members remember it vividly—it was over two thousand years ago. I think it can fly, but the knowledge of how, is missing.”

“I wonder what were they doing here,” Turi mused.

“From what I’ve been told, fleeing the Axis…unsuccessfully, I’m sorry to say. They were taken by the Axis. The fortress stood empty for many years, then Ellion was installed in it as an overseer. The rest, you know.” She paused, her shadowy form swirling. “I’ve told Ellion all this before and he never takes it well,” she said with a bitter edge. “But the Axis always take him and alter his mind so he forgets. And now they’re going to do it again.”

The Axis’ summons, Ellion’s forgotten past, the secrets hidden within the fortress—it was all interconnected, a tangled web of intrigue and danger. Ara was right. Their fragile peace was over. And Turi knew, with a growing sense of dread and determination, that their fight for freedom had just begun.